


a christmas miracle

by chorima



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Music School, Christmas Party, Drinking, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, M/M, Making Out, Pianist Na Jaemin, Violinist Lee Jeno
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-26
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-23 16:48:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17084051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chorima/pseuds/chorima
Summary: Jeno can't stand the sight of Na Jaemin, one of the most brilliant pianists in the Music Program. Things get harder when they have to work together for the Christmas concert their school organizes every year. If he doesn't end up killing the pianist... then that'd be a Christmas miracle.





	a christmas miracle

**Author's Note:**

> [ि०॰०ॢी](https://66.media.tumblr.com/789d528baf7cd7e5ecfcf8fc6c2ebf4c/tumblr_inline_pa13p2WkDe1v8enjk_500.gif) \+ [(ฅ'ω'ฅ)](https://66.media.tumblr.com/9adae74f11191c0c59fcdfefcaaf6f5f/tumblr_pjdb0ae9Ig1xp413ao3_250.gif)
> 
> i think i should warn that there are mentions of vomit towards the end of the fic, in case that's something you are not comfortable with/triggers you.
> 
> enjoy ♥

Even if on the inside Jeno is filled with worries and insecurities, on the outside he's a pretty chill guy, or at least that's what he's known for. He has a signature poker face that normally scares people off, and most of his peers think of him as this stone cold monster that doesn't smile at people who greet him in the hallways, who doesn't even flinch at people who trip next to him. Even his friends, Renjun and Heejin, call him the Ice Prince jokingly whenever he doesn't react to the stories they tell him as a "normal human being would."

So it is very much out of character when he lets out the loudest scream Renjun has ever heard in the middle of the hallway on a Monday morning after learning about his partner for the Christmas concert.

The Christmas concert is held by the Music Department every year during the holiday season for the students' friends and families. The students prepare their pieces to perform in front of them and then they have a small event with food and drinks for the attendants afterwards – fancy stuff, according to Renjun. It's Jeno's second year doing it and, after last year's fiasco (his partner, a girl called Yeeun, showed up slightly tipsy to fight her stage fright) he didn't think it could get any worse. But it certainly could, and it did, but he only learnt that after seeing Na Jaemin's name written next to his on the list hanging on Professor Qian's office door.

"He's not that bad," Renjun assures after checking the list and holding in a gasp.

Jeno's face is a deep shade of red still, and he looks like he could spit fire. Some younger students at the end of the hallway are still staring at him with a concerned look on their faces after hearing Jeno yell like he had been stabbed.

"Not _that_ bad?" Jeno hisses back, frowning.

To be fair, Jaemin is _not_ that bad. In fact, he's one of the most brilliant pianists in the program. He's just not the model student at all: he's always late or interrumpting lessons, never does his homework and ignores basic instructions. Jeno can only assume the only reason Jaemin is as good a pianist as he is, is because he has been gifted at birth. He's never seen him worried about having to practice hard, but he sure has witnessed him being praised so many times he has lost count (and Jaemin smiling cockily as a response), and Jeno can't stand it, not now, not ever.

"You're being dramatic," Renjun states. He knows how Jeno feels about having to even come close to Na Jaemin, the embodiment of arrogance, the epitome of condescension. "He's good, and what's more important: he will not pull a Yeeun."

Jeno snorts. "I'd rather being partners with Yeeun again," he says.

Renjun squints, not buying it. "No, you would not." He retorts, emphasizing his words with an energetic nod. "You almost smashed your violin on her head," the older reminds Jeno with a slight edge on his voice.

"Well, nobody said Na isn't at risk of me doing it to him," Jeno remarks, his eyebrow tilting up.

Renjun sighs, defeated, and rolls his eyes. At this point, Jeno is a lost cause.

  
  


"Who are you working with for the Christmas concert?" Jeno asks nonchalantly.

He is at Heejin's, and he has spent a good amount of time being a good friend and listening to her rant about her crush on some girl he's never seen. It is now time for her to listen to his concerns. She will be more understanding than Renjun, and he needs that right now, just like she needed him to validate her feelings towards that girl – even if she's only spoken to her twice.

"Uh... You know Zhong Chenle?" She asks, squinting a little bit.

"Oh. Good. Lucky."

Heejin shrugs. "I mean, I guess, I don't know much about him. Why do you ask, who did you get?"

The boy sighs. "Guess."

"I don't know, dude, just tell me!"

Jeno stares at the ceiling, resignated. "Na Jaemin."

Heejin chuckles, and it makes Jeno want to smack her in the head, but he bites his lips instead. She knows as well as Renjun about his hatred for Na, at some point she has even joined him and dragged him for his attitude. And he was her partner for the concert last year, she should understand Jeno's suffering.

"Stop laughing," Jeno demands quietly after a while. "It's not funny."

Heejin scrunches up her face and reaches to touch Jeno's shoulder. "But it _so_ is!" She says like she is talking to a toddler.

Jeno swats her hand from his shoulder, sulky. "Stop! Do I laugh at you when your crushes turn out to be straight?"

Heejin gasps, suddenly serious. "That's mean, Jeno."

"Well, _you_ were being mean." Jeno replies pettily. "But seriously, what do I do?"

"Just suck it up. He isn't that bad."

"That's what Renjun said. I don't trust you two."

"Oh my god," Heejin whines, her eyebrows furrowing, "stop being such a little bitch! You'll have to work with people you don't like, it's... unavoidable. Act like a pro, man."

  
  


Heejin's words are ingrained in Jeno's brain when the time comes for him to meet Jaemin for the first time. _Act like a pro_ , he repeats to himself over and over again, in an attempt to convince himself that he'll be able to handle it.

Honestly speaking, it's not the _first_ time he meets the other boy. He tries and tries to erase the memories from his brain, but in his first year at Music School, he would hear someone practice every Wednesday on his way to his own violin lessons. The anonymous pianist would make Jeno's world spin: the way they played showed such emotion, such sensitivity, passion, that it didn't take long until Jeno's curiosity took over, and he decided to go look for this mysterious person. And there he found Na Jaemin, sitting at the piano, eyes closed, head slightly cocked to the side, his fingers flying over the keys. Jeno was so mesmerized that he started arriving early to his lessons so he could go and watch Jaemin play in secret for a while before they started. The illusion broke, however, once he heard the boy talk in class. Since then, he's blamed himself for being so damn nosy and dicovering the mysterious pianist's identity: he'd be so much happier not knowing such skill and delicacy belong to such a condescending jerk.

He opens the door of the practice room with a heavy sigh only to find out it is empty. Of course Jaemin is going to be late, it's him who we're talking about. Jeno rolls his eyes, leaving his bag on the ground and taking a seat and getting his phone out of the pocket of his jeans.

**From Jeno:**

[4:30 p.m.] he's not here

[4:30 p.m.] i'm gonna kill him and then myself

**From Demon girl:**

[4:35 p.m.] oh my gooooooooooood stfu

[4:36 p.m.] not everyone is always on time to places bitch give him a break!!

**From Jeno:**

[4:36 p.m.] listen i don't wanna be here either i just got on time because the ealier i get this over with, the better

**From Demon girl:**

[4:37 p.m. **]** jeez he breathed dude

**From Jeno:**

[4:37 p.m.] and that's too much already

Jeno huffs when Heejin replies with an eyeroll emoji, and just as he is going to open his chat with Renjun to complain to him about it, somebody abruptly opens the door of the room, making him flinch.

"Hi!" Jaemin lets out in between heavy breaths. It looks like he ran all the way there. "I'm sorry, I missed my bus and..."

"Don't care," Jeno replies, solemn.

Jaemin's friendly smile doesn't budge at the words, and he sits down in front of Jeno after taking off his expensive-looking padded jacket.

The boy is as tall as himself, if not a few inches taller, and his light brown hair, mostly covered under a red beanie, falls over his dark eyes. He's wearing a black hoodie and skinny jeans that hug his legs. He's close enough for Jeno to smell his cologne, which would be quite nice if he hadn't put way too much on.

He claps energetically, and the echo of the sound lingers in Jeno's ears for far too long. "So, how are we gonna do this?"

"Do you even know what piece we're playing?" Jeno asks, raising an skeptical eyebrow.

"Uh, duh? The first movement of Schubert's Violin Sonatina in A Minor." Jaemin replies, squiting as if proving to Jeno that he isn't as dumb as he thought.

"Wow, I'm impressed."

"Why would you be impressed?"

Jeno shrugs, refusing to answer to that question. "Professor Qian said he's checking on us every Monday, so we should meet every day for like... Fifty minutes?" He says. "I can only meet in the morning before my classes start. When are you free?"

Jaemin blinks twice, letting the information sink in slowly – Jeno spoke so fast he needs a few seconds to catch up. "In the morning?" He complains, first of all. Of course that's his priority, Jeno thinks, he needs time to recover from his parties and such.

"Yes, Na, I have a life to live in the afternoons."

"Okay? So do I."

"Look, I don't want to wake up earlier for this either, but we all need to make sacrifices."

Jaemin huffs, but gives in, leaning back in his chair. "Mornings it is, then."

"Cool. Here?"

"Fine by me."

"Then it's settled. See you tomorrow at eight."

  
  


Much to Jeno's surprise, Jaemin is not that insufferable to work with. Yes, he's late and/or hangover most of the time, and spends too much of their practice hours cracking jokes, trying to make Jeno laugh – or react to him in any way that's not rolling his eyes and sighing, or directly ignoring him for a few minutes, – but he is also fairly quick picking things up and very open to criticism, no matter how hard or reasonable it is from Jeno's part. There is no denying how good of a pianist he is, and Jeno doesn't know if he is happy to have gotten such an easy-going partner or bothered because all of his suspicions about him are being confirmed to be wrong.

"I have a feeling that you don't like me that much." Jaemin says once, while Jeno picks his things up after a practice. They have been seeing each other every day for the last two and a half weeks, and even though Jeno knows Jaemin isn't that big of a monster, his attitude towards him hasn't changed at all.

His face scrunches up. "Just a feeling?"

Jaemin lets out an airy laugh. "So, it's true, you don't like me."

Jeno almost whines. He doesn't want to have that conversation. He doesn't like confrontation, especially because deep down he knows he has no reason whatsoever to dislike the guy – even if he won't admit it, especially not to Heejin and Renjun.

"Why do you care so much?" He asks instead of confirming, annoyed. "It's impossible to be liked by everyone you meet."

"Well, because _I_ like you," Jaemin shrugs, his eyes not meeting Jeno's. "I think we could be great friends if you gave me a chance."

Jeno takes a deep breath. "I'm sorry," he starts, "I don't want to," he says with a grimace.

It seems like Jaemin really likes Jeno, because he never gets offended by anything he says – and he can be really bitchy sometimes. He laughs, "it's okay, you'll warm up to me. Have a nice day, Jeno."

  
  


"And then he said, 'you'll warm up to me,'" Jeno tells Renjun, mocking Jaemin's voice in an annoying tone. "What does that even mean?!"

Renjun, who is laying on the floor with his head resting on a fluffy pillow, idly scrolling through his Twitter feed, laughs.

"He's into you, I'm calling it now."

"Well, too bad. I'm not into him."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, bud," Renjun retorts, locking his phone and turning on his side to look at Jeno with a smirk on his lips.

Jeno, laying on his belly, looks back at his friend with his eyebrows furrowed. "Look, he's cute or whatever, but..."

"Don't 'he's cute or whatever' me, Jeno." Renjun warns. "I haven't forgotten about your crush on that pianist that... Oh yeah, turned out to be him!"

Jeno rolls his eyes, "that was before I knew his lazy ass gets everything he wants whenever he wants it without working for it even a little bit. He's good, yes. But so am I, and I work twice as hard for it and get half the praise." His words get slower and more solemn as he speaks, and it feels like someone is suddenly clenching their fist around his heart. The image of his parents appears in his mind, and he has to blink a few times to get rid of it.

Somehow, Renjun must realize where Jeno's train of thought must have gone, because he stays quitely nodding for a while before changing the subject.

"Let's do something else. Do you want to make a cake?" He proposes, smiling in a comforting way, and Jeno accepts.

  
  


It is Thursday and they are meeting up for practice in the afternoon instead, because it's the only day that Jaemin can't make it in the morning due to his schedule. The younger shows up with coffee for both of them – _for my favorite partner :)_ written on Jeno's cup, – and this time he doesn't mess up Jeno's order.

Heejin is there too, because Jeno is going to help her get a new outfit for a date after he's done with practice, and also because he would like feedback from a fellow violinist after getting "scolded" by Professor Qian.

"You should have told me she was coming!" Jaemin reprimands Jeno, a frown sitting on his face. "I could have gotten her something too."

"Oh, don't worry," Heejin says, waving her hand, "I'll just steal from Jeno."

"Back off, demon," Jeno tells her, grabbing his cup and turning away from her in a protecting way.

Heejin sticks her tongue out at him and Jaemin lets out a laugh, sitting at the piano after taking a sip from his Iced Americano.

As usual, Jaemin has no problem playing his part. He is always accurate and able to easily translate his feelings into music, no matter how fast or complicated the piece is. Jeno, however, is having trouble getting to the level of perfection he expects himself to be at.

He doesn't know what has gotten to him the last few days, but it's like he's blocked, stuck. He tries and tries for hours, and repeats the harder parts all over again, until his fingers hurt from the friction against the strings, until his arm feels heavy from holding up the violin, but he still can't seem to get them down perfectly, and it bugs him, especially since Professor Qian seemed to notice too, and now Heejin as well.

Jeno doesn't need to ask her what she thought about it once he's done, because the grimace on her face says it all: he's fucked. He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes, and Heejin is quick to make sure it isn't as bad.

"You're just a little slow! You can fix that, Jen, I've seen you fix way more complicated stuff."

Jaemin stares at them both, serious, as if contemplating whether it'd be a good idea to intervene. He finally decides to do so, licking his lips before speaking: "It's not that bad, I don't think it's that easy to notice. And you still have time to improve."

Jeno bites the inside of his cheek instead of snapping at him. He knows he's trying to help, to be comforting, even if nobody asked for it. Heejin reads the situation, so she gets up from where she's been sitting the whole time and hugs Jeno, resting her head on his chest and swaying from side to side. She then pulls away and smiles at him.

"Now, let's go get me a killing outfit. I'll treat you to a croissant from that place you like on the way to the mall."

Jeno chuckles, "Okay, I'd like that."

"Can I join?" Jaemin chimes in, a cheeky grin on his lips.

Both Jeno and Heejin abruptly turn in his direction, and Jeno exclaims a loud "no!" while Heejin says, semi-jokingly "don't ruin this sweet moment for us!"

Jaemin snorts, raising his hands, "okay, okay, don't kill me." Then he takes his signature padded jacket and puts his beanie on – this time it's a dark green instead – before waving at them. "Have fun, guys," he says before he leaves, his smile never leaving his face.

  
  


Surprisingly, the croissant from the fancy place Jeno likes cheers him up more than he had expected when Heejin proposed it. They both get one pastry and a cup of hot chocolate before heading to the mall, and he sips on the warm beverage while his friend rambles about the kind of clothes she might want to get. Jeno doesn't really care that much for clothes, but Heejin whined about not wanting to go alone – both Chaewon and Yerim, her shopping buddies, are busy, – about desperately needing a second opinion, and especially about not expending enough time with her 'ultimate bestest friend in the entire galaxy,' so Jeno eventually gave in.

December is almost around the corner, so the streets have been lit up by colorful Christmas lights for over two weeks, and the stores are also decorated with Christmas trees and more festive stuff. Jeno isn't really festive, but he does love walking around the streets during this time of the year when the sun has already gone down so he can clearly see the different patterns of lights. Even if it's freezing cold outside, Christmas time usually makes him warm inside.

There is a huge Santa statue made out of lights right in front of the main entrance to the mall, and lots of people take pictures next to it to post on their social media. Heejin rolls her eyes at them, and Jeno can almost hear her say 'basic,' which makes him snort.

They walk around the mall and go into the stores that catch Heejin's eye and then Jeno waits patiently for her to try on her clothes, mostly while chatting with Renjun.

Heejin opens the curtain of the fitting room all of a sudden, startling Jeno. She was trying on a black see-through blouse and black leather pants, but she doesn't look too convinced.

"What's wrong?" Jeno asks, frowning, as he puts his phone into his pocket. "You look nice."

"It _is_ nice. But I don't know, man... I want Hyunjin to see that I'm not just cute or whatever." She complains, putting her hair in a pony tail while she looks at her reflection on the mirror. "I need something..."

"That makes you look like a hoe?" Jeno ends.

Heejin turns around and slaps Jeno in the arm. "No!" She exclaims. "I mean... Yeah. But a classy one."

"I mean... Mission accomplished, right?" Jeno tries, not really knowing where his friend is going.

"I don't totally see it." She frowns, eyes glued to the mirror again, examinating every inch of her own body.

"Maybe try on the skirt?" Jeno suggests, and Heejin walks into the fitting room again.

She is in there, and Jeno hears her tripping and struggling to take the leather pants off, but she starts talking to him anyway.

"So!" Thud. Heejin panting and then clearing her throat. "How's it going with Jaemin?"

Jeno frowns at the curtain, as if his friend could see him. "What do you mean?"

"Did you warm up to him?"

The boy clicks his tongue. "Tell Renjun to fuck off."

The girl laughs. "I will. But really, are you still tempted to jump off the roof?"

Jeno has to really think about that answer. He doesn't really want to admit that he was overreacting, that his friends were right and he was wrong, that his archnemesis turned out to... actually be okay. But there's no point in lying to Heejin, anyway. He takes a deep breath.

"He isn't that bad." He finally admits. "Once you ignore all the stupid comments you never asked for."

Heejin laughs as she goes back outside, this time with the skirt on – Jeno was right, she looks better this way. "I saw that earlier. It _is_ annoying. But he's just trying to be nice. I actually like him a lil' bit now."

"Don't tell me even your gay ass fell for his stupid flirty lines?"

Heejin snorts. "Maybe. I should go with the skirt, right?"

"Yep."

"Cool. Classy hoe outfit: check."

  
  


Today isn't Jeno's day... at all. He ran out of shampoo, so his hair is an actual mess, his card got declined when he was trying to pay for his morning coffee – it's early, he was in a rush and forgot to bring cash – and it started to rain as soon as he stepped a foot on the street again, after finally managing to pay for his daily dose of caffeine.

He's in a bad mood, a bad mood that not even seeing stray cats on the street can fix.

When he makes it to the practice room, Jaemin is already inside chatting with Professor Qian. The man is in his early thirties, and almost always wears jeans and cosy cardigans or sweaters, which make him look approachable to students. Everyone loves him, but seeing him today is not on the list of the things Jeno is looking forward to the most – in fact, there is only one thing on the list, going back home, crawling on his bed and hiding under the blankets for the rest of the week.

"Sorry I'm late," he murmurs once he catches his breath, taking off his soaking wet jacket.

"Oh, don't worry, Jeno, I just got here," Professor Qian says, waving his hand with his signature dimpled smile on his face.

While Jeno gets ready, Jaemin keeps his conversation with Qian going.

"So, are you and Sicheng going back to China for the holidays?" The boy asks. Jeno feels embarrassed to even be a witness to that question, it's something _so_ inapropriate to ask your professor. But it's Jaemin who's talking, so of course he doesn't care about those kinds of things, even if it makes Jeno's skin itch.

Qian stays quiet for a moment, as if pondering whether answering or not. "Yes, we're going back, thanks for asking," he finally replies, cautiously, and he is clearly holding back some information. He must know as well as Jeno how his personal life is none of Jaemin's business.

Jeno finally gets his violin ready and Qian asks them to start playing while he sits on a chair, eyes focused on the ground, tapping his right feet as he listens, concentrated in the piece.

And at first it goes well, but Jeno's destined to continue to fuck up today, so he does once, which makes him lose it and mess things up even more. Still, he keeps his cool on the outside even if his insides are telling him how much of a failure and a disappointment he is, and he keeps playing as if nothing had happened.

To be fair, Jaemin's fingers also slip a couple of times after Jeno's mistakes. Which is weird, because Jaemin has his part down, and he barely makes mistakes. And that can only mean...

  
  


"Explain yourself," Jeno demands, dead serious, infuriated but still trying to keep it mature. He doesn't want to just explode on his partner, he wants to manage his anger in a grown-up way.

Jaemin frowns, acting like he doesn't know what Jeno's talking about.

"What do you mean?" he asks.

"I know for a fact you don't make mistakes during that part." Jeno states, still trying to keep his cool despite Jaemin acting like a fool.

The other boy clicks his tongue and raises his eyes to the ceiling. "Okay, I was trying to distract Kun from your mistakes," he admits, admitting defeat.

Jeno wants to punch him, but he doesn't. He clenches his fists on his sides instead, trying to take deep breaths so he doesn't lash out on his partner. But he's so, so angry, he feels so underestimated.

"Did I ask you to?"

"Well, no bu–"

Jeno cuts him off before he can even begin to explain himself.

"So, why? Why did you think that was okay?" He asks, staring at Jaemin in the eyes.

"You're being too hard on yourself, dude, and it's obvious you were having a bad day, I thought I was doing you a favor..." Jaemin explains. By the expression on his eyes, Jeno can tell he's being genuine, but he doesn't care, he's too embarrassed to care. Is he really that bad that other people have to fail to cover up his mistakes?

"Well, nobody asked for your favors, Na." Jeno spits out every word with poison. He can feel the heat on his face and the tears of rage beginning to form on his eyes. "You don't fucking know me, _dude_ , and I don't want you to. So stop. We're not friends, and after this we'll definitely _never_ be." He looks up at the ceiling to stop the tears from running down his cheeks, he lets out a deep breath and grunts, raising his hands up to his head, gripping his own hair and turning away from the other boy. "Do you even know how fucking humiliating that was?!" He cries out. "Do you have any idea of how you made me feel?"

Jaemin is frozen. He's just watching Jeno with his mouth agape, his hands fidgeting on his sides, unsure of where to go, not being able to come up with anything to justify himself.

"Listen, Jeno..." he trails off.

"No, _you listen,_ Jaemin," Jeno interrupts. He didn't want to snap but he just can't hold it in anymore. It's too much. "I've had enough of your shit. I can handle you not being on time every single day, being annoying, trying to get me to like you with your stupid ass jokes even if I told you to back off. But I can't handle being disrespected like this. I work _too damn hard_ on my skills for someone like _you" –_ the disdain in that word makes Jaemin's expression shift, flinching like he just took a hit, and the corners of his lips curl down as he bites on them – "to discredit my abilities the way you just did."

"I was just trying to have your back," Jaemin whispers softly, his eyes staring into the ground, not being able to meet Jeno's.

"Just learn when to fucking quit, buddy," Jeno says, dragging the words with anger. "I never wanted you around."

They stay silent for a few seconds that seem like an eternity. Jeno feels his breathing slowly going back to normal, his fists unclenching. Then Jaemin nods quietly.

"Noted." He says, and Jeno notices how the muscles of his jaw pull under his skin, and he almost regrets his whole speech. "You won't have me around."

  
  


"Jeno!" Renjun whines, scrunching his eyes shut as if he got a headache because of his friend's stupidity.

"What?!" The other boy almost barks.

He has been stomping around his friend's room for half an hour before actually telling him what he is mad about, to the point where Renjun just started folding his newly-washed clothes to store them in his closet and revising his Music History notes while the other sulked, completely ignoring his whole tantrum, like a parent who lets their toddler cry themselves into exhaustion.

"You are such a jerk!" The boy complains.

" _He's_ the jerk!" Jeno retorts, his voice high-pitched out of frustration.

Renjun clicks his tongue the way he does when he's holding himself from saying something, in Heejin's words, 'so controversial yet so brave.'

He understands Jeno, he really does. He knows how much he battles with himself every day to become the best musician he can be, how much he struggles to believe people's praise when it doesn't come from the ones he expects or wants to praise him, his fear of failure, of being a disappointment to his family. He understands.

But he can't let his best friend turn into someone he's not, and he's not mean or rude, much less full of hate and anger.

"Lately you've been putting too much pressure on yourself," he starts, speaking softly, "and you didn't start the day well. It has all turned into this tornado of frustration and fury, and it happened to meet Jaemin."

"But he–" Jeno wants to intervene, but Renjun raises a finger.

"You just happen to not like them for whatever personal reason. It's not that he's a bad person, you _know_ that," Renjun reasons out loud. "You're just taking all of your issues and blaming him for them. But he's not the one to blame here, and you know that deep down as well." The boy makes a pause, and Jeno doesn't try to chime in this time, and gives his friend time to finish instead. "You don't want to be friends with him? That's valid. But he was coming from a good place, so he doesn't deserve to be treated the way you treated him this morning. And I know that's not who you are either."

Jeno stays quiet for a while. All the anger and frustration that he felt has suddenly dissipated, and he knows Renjun is right. God, what would he do without his best friend, the voice of reason?

He lets out a big sigh. "So, what do you suggest I should do?" He asks.

The right corner of Renjun's lips curls up as he snorts and shakes his head. "Go apologize, you fucking dumbass."

  
  


**From Jeno:**

[9:00 p.m.] hey, are you free after practice tomorrow?

[11:05 p.m.] it's kinda urgent...

**From Jeno:**

[8:15 a.m.] so you're not even coming to practice either, huh...

[8:16 a.m.] it's fine, i get it

[8:16 a.m.] i wouldn't wanna see me either

**From Jeno:**

[8:07 a.m.] still no practice? okay...

**From Jeno:**

[7:34 p.m.] hey

[7:34 p.m.] i really wanna talk to you

[7:35 p.m.] wait did you block me

  
  


Jeno stares at his open chat with Jaemin on the screen of his phone while Heejin gets changed into her party clothes. She is dragging him to a party she got invited to because she doesn't 'want to look like a loser' and because she thinks it'll be nice to cheer him up. It's been long since Jeno last went to a party, not because he doesn't like parties, but because sometimes he gets so caught up in his own thing, waking up early and practicing, not missing classes, that he literally forgets there is a whole world out there for him to have some fun, besides going to cafés with his friends to grab snacks during his breaks. And even though he isn't fully convinced that he wants to party right now, he thinks Heejin might have a point and it may be good for him.

He lets out a deep, long sigh.

"Stop sulking, bitch," Heejin reprimands him from the chair she is sitting on in order not to fall while putting on her tights.

Jeno frowns, "I'm trying to make things right with him and he's making it so hard!"

His friend rolls her eyes and gets up from the chair. "You were an asshole to him, it's normal he wants some time."

"He could have said so instead of blocking me," Jeno pouts, and she kicks him in the shin with her bare foot.

"Have you tried waiting for him until his classes end?" She suggests, sitting next to him on her bed and leaning her head on his shoulder.

"I feel like that'd be creepy and he'd run away from me and then get a restraining order," he replies, locking his phone and passing an arm around Heejin's shoulders.

"Well, you don't have another choice," she says. She kisses him on the cheek. "Now cheer up. I'm gonna do my make up, put some music on. And there's some vodka in the cabinet, get us drinks to get going, okay?"

He nods and goes to look for the vodka. He's gonna need some for the night ahead.

  
  


The party is far enough from Heejin's apartment for them to catch a cab. They get on the back seat as graciously as they can – not very, for those who wonder – and stay there for the twenty minutes the ride lasts snickering while taking pictures to post in Heejin's Instagram stories.

"I look so fucked up," Jeno whisper-yells.

"You _are_ fucked up," Heejin replies trying to hold in a burst of laughter.

When they arrive, Jeno almost falls trying to get out of the cab and Heejin starts laughing like a dolphin, but luckily there is no one around to see them. Everyone's inside of the house, which looks smaller from the outside. They really weren't expecting to see much people, since Heejin said it was a small party, nothing too crazy, but there is, indeed.

"C'mon let's get drinks," Jeno says, tugging at Heejin's arm, who's looking for familiar faces around but can't seem to find any.

At some point, Jeno loses track of where he is. Heejin, who somewhow manages to stay somewhat sober, keeps handing him cups, and he's happy to take them. They dance and laugh at each other like they used to when Jeno wasn't busy. They're having a good time.

"I miss Renjun, though," Jeno pouts.

"I know, right?" Heejin pouts back.

They keep dancing and running to the bathroom every once in a while, but eventually they tire themselves out, so they seat on the only couch that seems available at the moment – not that they needed a couch, they would've sat on the sticky floor if necessary. Heejin throws her legs over Jeno's and leans back. They stay like that for a while, drunkenly checking their phones and sending each other memes, until the girl suddenly gets up.

"Shit, Jeno, look!" She exclaims, pointing in a certain direction, and even moving Jeno's head to follow her line fo sight. Jeno struggles to see what she is talking about at first, but then he does, and his mouth hangs open.

"Jaemin," he whispers.

The boy is there, holding a cup that he occasionally takes to his lips, and talking to some of his friends from school – or at least one of them looks like Mark Lee. He's wearing black, ripped jeans, a pink sweater and a white beanie covering his now slightly darker hair. Jeno stares at him like he's a mirage.

"Do you want me to go with you to talk to him?" Heejin asks, tugging at his shirt, and Jeno nods, his eyes glued on Jaemin's figure.

They walk there carefully – sitting down for a while has helped Jeno's balance, but alas – and the boy's hands are sweaty. He really wants to seize the opportunity and talk to Jaemin while he can, but he's not in his best condition, so he almost chickens out a few times, but Heejin holds his hand tight and drags him forward: she knows if he doesn't do it now, he's gonna regret it.

Jeno clears his throat and taps on Jaemin's shoulder. The other boy turns around, and as he does his smile fades from his face. He bites his lip.

"Hi," Jeno says, timid, but still loud so he can be heard over the music.

"Hey," Jaemin replies dryly.

"Can I talk to you? Please?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Jeno."

Jeno nods, taking the no for an answer, but when he's going to walk away, Heejin's iron grip stops him.

"Hey, Jaemin," she starts, in an extremely bitchy tone, and Jaemin stares at her with an eyebrow raised, unamused, "I know my best friend is a fucking asshole, but he's trying to make it right, so you're gonna go outside with him and listen to what he has to say, okay?" She emphasizes with a nod.

Jaemin licks his lips and shrugs. "Okay, c'mon."

They make their way out, and once the cold night air hits their skins, Jaemin chugs half of the liquid in his cup down.

"Thank you for letting me speak to you," Jeno says. "I-I know I behaved like a piece of shit, and you didn't deserve that at all."

Jaemin's lips are pursed in a thin line, and he nods softly. "Is that all?" He doesn't sound annoyed even if Jeno interrupted him while having a good time, he just sounds tired.

"Honestly, no, I'd like to say a few things." Jeno says, and then clears his throat while trying to put his ideas in order, which is quite hard taking into account the state that he's in. "Uhmm... You were right, I was having a bad day. And my parents had visited on the weekend, and they are... uh, not great. So, um, I was angry and I dumped all my shit on you while you were trying to do a nice thing. And I'm sorry I insinuated you are a bad person, and called you annoying while you were just trying your best to befriend me. Sorry I didn't think of giving you a chance." He pauses for a second to catch his breath. "I was a dick the whole time and you were just sweet to me, no matter how rude I was to you. You even got me coffee all the time! I probably owe you a fortune by now..."

Jaemin chuckles, and he's not looking at Jeno but the other boy can see him smile a little.

"I'm not expecting you to forgive me. I, uh – I just want you to know that I know I suck big time."

Jaemin finally looks at Jeno, smiling, and his eyes sparkle.

"Thank you for saying that, Jeno," it's the first things he says. "It means a lot that you tried to reach out even if I didn't wanna talk. And... I was thinking about it, and... I understand where you were coming from when you said you felt insulted, so I apologize for that too."

"You really don't have to, I was a jerk," Jeno whispers.

"Yeah, but it was hurtful to you, so I shouldn't have done that," Jaemin insists.

They stay in silence for a few minutes, staring at the darkness, but Jeno speaks again.

"I know I said I never wanted to be your friend, but... Wanna go grab coffee sometime?"

They look at each other, and Jaemin smiles widely and brightly. "Yeah, I'd love that," he accepts, "but what about doing shots right now? To celebrate the beginning of our friendship?

For the first time since Jeno ever talked to Jaemin, he smiles back, wide and bright as well. "Sounds good, let's go."

  
  


The next time Jeno sees Jaemin it's back at their practice room, sitting at the piano and playing and upbeat melody while he waits.

"Hi," Jeno smiles as he sets his violin case down carefully and takes off his jacket.

Jaemin stops playing and smiles back, "hey, friend," he greets the older, and it still sounds weird to Jeno, who spent so much time hating him, hearing Jaemin refering to him as his friend. "I had fun the other day," he comments, "you should come to more parties, you're fun after all!"

Jeno rolls his eyes but he still laughs. "I don't know about that, I puked all over Heejin's carpet when we got home, so I doubt she'll take me out again anytime soon..." He explains.

"You can come with me now," Jaemin offers. "After all... We're friends now."

A deep frown appears in between Jeno's eyebrows, "stop saying it like that! You're making it awkward!" He protests, slapping him lightly on the arm, and Jaemin laughs.

The fifty minutes that follow become the easiest, most lighthearted practice session they ever had. Jeno is relaxed and goes along with Jaemin's comments, even cracks some jokes himself, and because Jeno is not as tense, not as pressured, not so focused on being distant, they sound better than ever together, and he even manages to fix his previous mistakes, those that didn't let him get a wink of sleep at night.

He wears a bright smile on his face the whole time, and when Jaemin suggests going to a café together as soon as they finish, he accepts the offer without even a bit hesitation.

**From Jun:**

[10:07 a.m.] lol i must be tripping

[10:08 a.m.] i though id just seen you at a cafe with jaemin

**From Jeno:**

[10:10 a.m.] it was me though?

**From Jun:**

[10:12 a.m.] BICTH and u were even SMILING at him?????

[10:12 a.m.] WHO ARE U AND WHAT DID U DO TO MY JENO

Going for coffee after practice becomes an habit and it turns into meeting for lunch and even going over to watch films. Jeno never expected to be close to Jaemin, let alone feel _so_ comfortable around him, but he does. The guy is sweet, thoughtful – he even helps him pick Jeno's Christmas presents for Heejin (a cute silver bracelet with a bunny charm) and Renjun (some art supplies he had his eyes on for a while), – caring and, even if at first he found his sense of humor annoying as hell, he's funny too. Jeno really enjoys his company and he feels so terrible for not having given him a chance earlier: he would have gained an awesome friend, who surprisingly shares a lot of things in common with him, and he would have spared himself a lot of anger and frustration when it came to the Christmas concert.

As he gets to know Jaemin better, he learns that not even his conception of him being lazy is true: Jaemin works hard as well, but picks things up easier than most, so he doesn't spend as much time on it as Jeno does. And with a little bit of reasoning from Jaemin, Jeno also learns that he shouldn't spend that much time going over things because his brain would end up fried.

It is night now, and Jaemin has spent almost the whole afternoon laying on Jeno's bed to the point where the sheets smell just like him. They didn't do much, just watched YouTube videos and ate pizza, but Jeno never got bored. When he's with Jaemin, he never does.

The younger smiles at him while putting on his jacket and then does something he's never really done before: he softly kisses Jeno goodbye on the cheek and thanks him for their afternoon together while he stares innocently at him with his huge, sparkly doe eyes.

Jeno closes the door behind Jaemin, his eyes open wide still, and then he leans his back against it, waiting for his head to stop spinning, and lets out a deep sigh.

He's fucked.

  
  


School is finally over for the holidays, which means that every single student is done with being responsible and ready to get hammered.

Jeno is no exception: this semester has really been somehting else for him, he has been estressed and tense for the most part of it, and even though the last few weeks were bearable, he's very much glad it's over and that he now gets to rest and celebrate.

There is a huge Christmas party that night: it's said it's going to be wild, that tons of people are coming and that it's the perfect way to end the semester all together. Although it is Jaemin who invites Jeno to go with him, Renjun and Heejin are also going to be there – _there is no way_ _i'm missing out on drunk jeno again,_ Renjun texts, _even if i have to bear with Heejin and Hyunjin being gross all night_.

Before the party, Renjun shows up at Jeno's place with a bottle of cheap wine and a reindeer headband that makes him look so adorable that Jeno has to hold back from giggling and squishing his cheeks.

"I have a matching one for you as well," Renjun says, handing the headband to him, and Jeno puts it on.

When Heejin arrives – she is also wearing a headband, only hers has snowmen that glow – she insists on taking pictures of them.

"I'm in a good mood, the Christmas spirit has come visit, alright?" He defends herself when Renjun and Jeno comment on how so not like her it is to do that.

Jaemin is the last one to come. When Jeno opens the door, the boy is standing there, wearing a Christmas sweater under his jacket and a Santa hat on top of his head, covering his always not-so-uncarefully styled hair. He's holding a bottle of liquor in his hands as well, and he stares at Jeno with a blinding smile.

"Can I come in?" He asks.

Jeno shakes his head as if to wake up from a dream and steps to the side to let Jaemin in, "of course, sorry."

As soon as Heejin and Renjun greet Jaemin, they get the wine, sit down and start playing drinking games to get themselves _lit_ – Jaemin's words. The bottle of wine ends up empty, and when they are almost halfway through the liquor one, they decide to call a cab a leave for the party.

Jeno ends up squised against the left door of the backseat and Jaemin's body. Jaemin rests his hand on Jeno's knee while he talks to Heejin on his right, and Jeno feels his whole body on fire, not sure if it's the alcohol running through his veins or Jaemin's touch or both.

When they arrive to the party, Heejin drags Renjun with her to go look for Hyunjin, and Jeno is left alone with Jaemin in an ocean of people. Jaemin takes his hand to get his attention.

"Let's go find some drinks?" He speaks in Jeno's ear so he can be heard, and his lips definitely brush against the shell of Jeno's ear. Jeno nods, and they are still holding hands when Jaemin starts moving in between the people.

Jaemin gets them both cups with some sort of alcohol that burns Jeno's throat when he swallows, and they stay at the kitchen, which is the most quiet room, very close to each other. Jaemin's friends find them there and they stay together for a while: they do some shots, briefly play drinking games that Wong Yukhei has downloaded on his phone...

Jeno's eyes are heavy, hidden by his thick eyelashes, and his vision gets blurry eventually, but he still joins Jaemin when he asks him to dance. They are again squished against the other, mostly because there is barely no space in the house, and Jaemin's hand rests on Jeno's hip.

The boy looks otherworldly under the flashing party lights. His body moves to the music like he's under some sort of charm, so smoothly, so impecably, Jeno can't do anything but stare while he tries to follow, much less graciously, with an arm slung over Jaemin's shoulder. Their eyes lock and Jaemin grins cheekily, biting the corner of his bottom lip, and it takes all of Jeno's willpower not to lean forward and kiss him, because his whole body is on fire once again, and this time he's pretty sure it's not the alcohol's fault.

"Come with me?" Jaemin asks in his ear, and Jeno feels the warmth of his breath, that sends shivers down his spine.

He nods, completely infatuated, and lets Jaemin drag him outside, giggling. They sit down next to each other and Jaemin rests his head on Jeno's shoulder. He still hasn't let go of Jeno's hand, so he fidgets with his fingers.

"Sorry, I needed fresh air," he apologizes.

"It's cool," Jeno replies. "You having fun?"

Jaemin giggles again, and moves his head to look at Jeno, still resting his chin on the other boy's shoulder. "Yeah, you're the best," he says, and Jeno doesn't know if he's tripping or if Jaemin really is staring at his lips while licking his own.

Jeno holds Jaemin's hand tighter with a smile on his lips, suddenly shy at the compliment, and Jaemin tightens his grip a little bit too. They look at each other in the eyes without saying anything, because nothing really needs to be said, the way in which they exchange looks is enough. Jeno feels warmth spread from his chest around his whole body, and if he wasn't holding the other boy's hand, he would probably shaking. He can now confirm Jaemin is blatantly staring at his lips, so he shamelessly stares back, and it feels like when you put two magnets really close to each other without letting them touch. Jeno can feel how they slowly get close to each other, he can smell Jaemin's perfume, he can feel the warmth of his breath, their noses brushing...

"Jeno!" Someone yells, and the moment is ruined, the chance is missed, he's not kissing Jaemin tonight, probably not ever. He pulls away from the other boy and looks to where the voice is coming from to find a mortified Renjun. "Oh– erm, s-sorry," he stutters, "it's... It's Heejin, she's throwing up everywhere."

Jeno closes his eyes and lets out a deep sigh. "I'm sorry, Jaemin," he whispers, "I have to go."

Jaemin nods, understanding, still biting his lips. "Don't worry, she needs you."

Jeno smiles shyly at him and brings their hands, still interlocked, to his lips to kiss Jaemin's knuckles before he leaves. "Text me when you get home," he asks.

"Will do," Jaemin assures.

Jeno starts walking by Renjun's side, at a quick pace to get to Heejin as soon as possible. He doesn't know who the girls is with, how bad she's punking... He doesn't know anything, and even though it is something that happens to her more often than not, he's very worried.

They get to the bathroom they took for themselves as soon as Heejin started feeling bad. There are some people outside, very angryly knocking on the door, but Renjun threatens them with his scariest face, and even if he doesn't look like much, most people never risk getting in a fight with them – who knows, Jeno has definitely seen him carry a knife a few times, he wouldn't challenge the odds either, Renjun can be... deadly.

Heejin is indeed a mess. She's sitting on the floor, her dress riding up her legs, her hair disheveled, almost hugging the toilet seat with her head hanging above it. Hyunjin holds her hair quickly once Heejin gags over the toilet, and Jeno sighs. It's gonna be a shitshow taking her home.

Eventually, after much water drinking, making sure she can walk even if it's with help and, obviously, making sure she's not going to barf every ten seconds, Jeno takes her to a cab.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay with Jaemin?" Renjun asks, after Jeno has gotten Heejin on the backseat of the cab, seatbelt on and everything.

Jeno shrugs, "it's gonna be a lil' awkward if I return now. Plus, we both know I'm better at taking care of her."

Renjun slaps Jeno lightly in the arm, almost laughing – he knows Jeno's right – and then the boy gets in the car.

They have to stop a few times along the way to Heejin's apartment, which, thank god, isn't that far away from the party. He has 'stolen' a plastic bag from the party just in case Heejin needs to vomit again, but he still asks the driver to stop the car a few times for good measure.

They finally make it to Heejin's. Jeno has a hard time trying to find the key to open the door, because Heejin just giggles and is overall not very cooperative. Once inside, he makes her drink more water, helps her change into her pyjamas and cleans face and some strands of hair before helping her to go to bed.

"You're staying?" She asks, her voice low and definitely sleepy, and her eyes closed.

"Yep. Just to make sure you won't die."

"What about Jaemin?"

Jeno frowns, getting into bed next to his friend. "What about him?"

Heejin is clearly falling asleep, so it takes her a few seconds to process the question. "I... overheard Renjun asking about him. But I don't know," a pause in which she yawns, "what he was talking about."

"Oh," Jeno lets out. "Hmm, about that... We almost kissed."

Heejin cracks an eye open, suddenly smiling widely, and hugs Jeno tight, resting her head on his chest. He wraps an arm around her shoulders and brings her closer too.

"I like him for you," Heejin says, as if Jeno was asking for his parents' approval.

"And I like Hyunjin for you," Jeno replies, "get you a girl that holds your hair while you puke, am I right?"

Heejin chuckles, and for a second it looks like she's going to hit Jeno, but she finally doesn't. "I'm happy you found someone. Fucking finally," she says instead.

Jeno snorts, kind of bitterly. "I don't know, Renjun interrupted us, maybe now he regrets it, and..." He trails off when he notices his friend has completely knocked out, just like that. He smiles, amused, and kisses the top of her head.

It takes him a while to fall asleep too, so he still sees the light on his phone that means he has gotten a text.

**From Jaemin:**

[3:52 a.m.] homeee

[3:52 a.m.] had fun tonight

[3:53 a.m.] looking forward to pick up right where we left off ;)

Jeno bites his lip and locks his phone. He's definitely looking forward to it too.

  
  


It's finally the evening for the Christmas concert, and the school is decorated accordingly: there is a huge Christmas tree in front of the main door, right next to the staircase, and beautiful gardlands, lights and ornaments along the hallways.

Everyone's families, friends, or both come to see their loved ones dislpay their skills and passion, and Jeno's parents are no exception. He doesn't see them, but he knows they are sitting on the auditorium, next to Heejin's family, when his older sister texts him some encouraging words, that rather than calming him down have the opposite effect on him.

He doesn't usually get nervous when playing in public, but this is different. He needs to do it perfectly for them, no excuses, he has to prove how good he is to them, and making mistakes is not an option. He can't get this out of his head while he paces around the waiting room, frowning and staring at the floor.

"Are your parents here too?" He asks Jaemin, sitting next to him.

"Yep."

"Aren't you about to shit your pants?"

"Nope."

"Okay, how," he squints, and Jaemin laughs.

"Because it's chill. I know this piece like the back of my hand," Jaemin replies, looking into Jeno's eyes serious, and Jeno doesn't know why, but it's kinda soothing. "And you do too, so don't worry. We're going to do fucking amazing," he assures, smiling, and Jeno smiles back.

After Heejin and Chenle, who play a Mendelssohn piece, it's their turn. His hands are sweaty, but then Jaemin intertwines their fingers and tightens his grip, as if saying 'I'm here, it's going to be okay, breathe,' so he does, he breathes, and it gets a little better.

They go out in front of the whole auditorium, and the lightning on stage is a little bit blinding at first, but then his eyes get used to it. They bow to the audience, and then they walk apart, Jaemin sitting at the piano and Jeno standing on the front, his violin now resting under his chin. Before they start, they look at each other, Jaemin nods, encouraging, and Jeno smiles at him.

He takes a few deep breaths. It's going to be okay. As long as he's with Jaemin, everything's going to be fine.

And so everything starts with Jaemin, and Jeno closes his eyes, listening to his partner, and when it's time for him to come in, he does it at the perfect time, despite all of his doubts, despite all of the times he slipped. It sounds painful, and strident, and delicate at the same time. The violin and the piano complete each other, argue and make up. They are happy and sad, both energetic and gloomy, quiet and loud.

Jeno lets the music flow through him, he doesn't think, he just lets go, he follows what the music dictates, not what his brain wants to say, and it turns out, that's what he should have done a long time ago.

When the piece is over, he allows himself to look for familiar faces in the crowd and he spots his sister holding his mom's hand while she cries, his father applauding, most energetically than the rest of the audience. And, even though it feels amazing having touched their hearts with his music, with his _passion,_ he feels happier to have been able to do it driven by his love for the violin, that he has been able to express what the music wants to tell.

He and Jaemin bow again, and then they exit the stage, shooting knowing smiles at each other, wearing smiles of pure pride and bliss.

  
  


After the concert is over, Jeno meets his parents and his sister in the room where the 'party' with drinks and food takes place. His mother gives him the tightest hug he's ever had in months, his father shakes his hand and then brings him in for another hug, and then his sister screams and throws her arms around him, almost making him lose balance.

Heejin's parents also congratulate him afterwards, when their daughter finally finds him to scream at him for making her go crazy before the performance with his worries and doubts for nothing.

"You fucking nailed it, dude!" She says, and her mother shoots her a disapproving look, as if saying 'where are your manners, young lady?' "You literally almost made me ruin my make up! It was so beautiful, Jeno, my dad filmed the whole thing, I'll send it to you later so you can watch it every night before you go to sleep and knowing you're the best violinist ever – after me, of course – and that you have nothing to worry about."

Renjun gives him a similar speech to Heejin, hitting him with his closed fist for emphasis, the twisted way in which Renjun shows his love and appreciation to people – Jeno stopped tying to make it make sense long ago and just accepts the hits.

The last person to approache him is, of course, Jaemin.

"I was waiting for everyone to finish telling you how amazing you were," he says, a half-grin on his lips. As nervous as he was before, Jeno doesn't notice until now what Jaemin is wearing: burgundy pants, matching with his blazer, and a black turtleneck. He didn't know until now that Jaemin wearing formal clothes is all he needed in life. "Do you have a moment for me now?"

Jeno smiles back, smitten, and takes the hand Jaemin's holding out for him, lacing their fingers together.

Jaemin takes him to an empty hallway, far from the hall where everyone is. There is almost no light, just the emergency ones and whatever comes through the wide windows. When Jaemin considers they are far enough, he stops walking and pushes Jeno against the wall of the hallway, behind some curtains. Jeno gasps, and their eyes meet for a second. Jaemin's hands travel to the sides of Jeno's face while he sucks on his own lower lip, staring at Jeno's, and Jeno stares back, his hands timidly making their way to Jaemin's hips. They probably stay like that for a few seconds, but for Jeno it's minutes, hours, and even if the wants to kiss Jaemin more than anything in the world right not, he's not complaining: the boy, once again, looks otherworldly, perfect.

His heart is threatening to break out of his ribcage when Jaemin, without hesitation, shortens the distance between their lips, and they brush lightly at first, but Jeno wants more, he knows they both do. His grip on Jaemin's hips tightens, he brings the younger closer to him, to the point where Jaemin almost loses balance going forward, and they both giggle, breaking the kiss, but they keep going in for more, needy, thristy.

If someone had told him a few months back that this is how both of them would end, he would have wanted to jump off the roof, but he can't complain now: Jaemin is both soft and sweet, but sometimes goes a little bit crazy, and Jeno couldn't ask for more, because it makes him both melt and go insane like nobody else has.

Jeno bites on Jaemin's lower lip, making him gasp as well, and now one of Jaemin's hands is getting lost in Jeno's hair. Their tongues brush against each other, Jaemin leans his head to the side, letting out a little moan, tugging at Jeno's locks a little.

They break apart, panting, and Jeno leaves a few wet kisses on Jaemin's neck, while the other has his head thrown back and a grin on his lips.

"Needy much?" He asks, cockily.

"It's the accumulated tension," Jeno replies, serious, but also jokingly, not detaching his lips from the other's neck, who giggles again.

"Who would've known we'd be making out tonight, huh?" Jaemin says. "This is why you should have given me a chance from the start."

Jeno finally leaves Jaemin's neck alone, and goes in for his lips again, telling him to shut up in between kisses.

Jaemin breaks the kiss again after a while, resting his forehead on Jeno's, breathing heavily. "No, but... I really wanted to kiss you. Especially after the other day at the pary. And especially because you're wearing a suit that's literally making my knees weak and you look fucking hot when you play," Jeno giggles, giving him a peck, which Jaemin is quick to return. "But I wanted to ask you on a date first. If you want, obviously."

Jeno purses his lips together, keeping himself from smiling like the fool he is. "I'd love that, yeah."

Jaemin gives him a peck, and then looks at him in the eyes, and he instead doesn't hide his lovesick gaze. "Great," he smiles, "now, where were we...?"

 

**Author's Note:**

> hi!! merry christmas y'all! i hope y'all have the greatest holidays, they're very much needed for me... hehe  
> it was certainly a challenge for me writing this, especially because i am not a musician (who would've told huh), but it was very fun to write and to think about. also, i know it's not the most festive thing you'll ever find here lmao, but i really can't do better than this, i'm not a christmas person (oops).  
> [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCsuOf8h0VA) is the piece they play uwu  
> i didn't state it in the fic because i wanted to keep it somewhat lighthearted (lmfao anygay) but jeno's parents were against him pursuing music because they thought it's easy to fail, that's why jeno is so nervous around them.  
> also for their first date jaemin takes jeno to see the seoul philharmonic and they hold hands the whole time and have ice cream later even if it's freezing cold because it's january.  
> anyways lemme know what you guys think, comments and kudos always make me happy! see you soon (✿ ♥‿♥)  
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/cosmoIuda) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/cosmoIuda)


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